Polyphenolic extract of Ichnocarpus frutescens modifies hyperlipidemia status in diabetic rats

Natural remedies from medicinal plants are considered to be effective and safe alternative treatments for diabetes mellitus. Decoction prepared from the leaves of I. frutescens is used to alleviate the symptoms of diabetes mellitus in folk medicine. The present study was designed to evaluate the anti-diabetic and antihyperlipidemic effects of the polyphenolic extract (PPE) of I. frutescens leaves in alloxan induced diabetic rats. Diabetes was induced by single intraperitoneal injection of alloxan (150 mg/kg body weight). Polyphenolic extract to alloxan diabetic rats at the doses of 150 mg and 300 mg/kg body weight resulted in a significant reduction of fasting blood glucose (FBG) levels. PPE (300 mg/kg body weight for 21 days) administration showed significant decrease in hepatic HMG-CoA reductase activity of alloxan diabetic rats. No significant effects were found in the normoglycemic rats. Polyphenolic extract exhibited significant hypolipidemic effect as evident from correction of hyperlipidemic indicators (TC, TGs, VLDL, HDL and LDL). Oral administration of polyphenolic extract (100 mg/kg) significantly enhanced the release of lipoprotein lipase enzyme significantly. Polyphenolic extract also inhibited ADP-induced platelet aggregation in vitro. The results indicating the effectiveness of polyphenolic extract against hyperlipidemia and obesity in alloxandiabetic rats. The histopathological studies of aorta in polyphenolic extract treated alloxan-rats revealed almost recovery to normal appearance. All the results revealed the therapeutic potential of polyphenolic extract against diabetes, hyperlipidemia and atherosclerosis leading diabetic complications and cardiovascular risks.